Skip to main content

How to Revoke a Suspicious Token Approval

Token approvals let a smart contract or address spend a token from your wallet up to an allowed amount. A suspicious, unlimited, or no-longer-needed approval can remain active after you leave a dApp or disconnect its WalletConnect session.

danger

Disconnecting a dApp does not revoke its on-chain token approval. Revocation requires a separate blockchain transaction and a network fee.

When to Revoke an Approval​

Consider revoking an approval when:

  • You approved an unfamiliar contract or wallet address.
  • A transaction simulation warned about an unlimited approval or an externally owned spender.
  • You connected to a fake or compromised dApp.
  • A trusted dApp suffered a security incident.
  • You no longer use the service that received the approval.
  • The allowance is larger or lasts longer than you intended.

An approval is different from a normal transfer. It grants a spender permission to use a particular token; it does not immediately transfer the entire approved amount.

Record the Suspicious Approval​

Before interacting with another website, collect the public details:

  1. Open the affected token in Gem Wallet.
  2. Select the approval transaction in the activity list.
  3. Select View on explorer name.
  4. Record the network, wallet address, token contract, spender address, transaction ID, and approved amount.
  5. Verify that the explorer page and transaction belong to the expected blockchain.

Do not identify a contract by its display name alone. Compare its complete address with information from the dApp's official website or security notice.

Revoke an Ethereum Token Approval​

Gem Wallet does not currently provide an in-app list of active allowances. For an Ethereum ERC-20 approval, you can use the official Etherscan approval checker already referenced in Gem Wallet documentation:

  1. Type etherscan.io/tokenapprovalchecker into your browser or open the Etherscan Token Approval Checker.
  2. Verify that the hostname is exactly etherscan.io.
  3. Select Connect to Web3, choose WalletConnect, and connect Gem Wallet.
  4. Select the same wallet whose approval you recorded.
  5. Find the token and verify the complete spender address and allowance.
  6. Select Revoke for that approval.
  7. Review the request in Gem Wallet. Confirm that it targets the expected token and spender and changes the allowance to zero.
  8. Confirm the transaction only if every detail is correct.
  9. Wait for confirmation, then refresh the approval checker and verify that the allowance is removed or zero.

You need enough of the network's native coin to pay the revocation fee. For example, an Ethereum revocation requires ETH on Ethereum.

caution

Approval checkers are network-specific. Do not switch to a similarly named website or sign a different transaction because a site claims that revocation failed. For another network, begin with that network's official explorer and verify its domain independently.

After submitting the revocation:

  1. Open Gem Wallet > Settings > WalletConnect.
  2. Select the related connection.
  3. Verify the dApp name, website, wallet, and connection date.
  4. Select Disconnect.

This stops that WalletConnect session from sending new requests. It does not replace the on-chain revocation step.

Check Whether the Revocation Worked​

A submitted revocation is not complete until the network confirms it.

  1. Open the revocation transaction in Gem Wallet.
  2. Select View on explorer name.
  3. Confirm that the transaction succeeded on the correct network.
  4. Reopen the trusted approval checker and verify that the allowance is zero or no longer listed.

If the transaction is pending, do not repeatedly submit replacements from unfamiliar websites. Follow Why Is My Crypto Transaction Pending?.

If Assets Have Already Moved​

Revoking an approval prevents future use of that allowance after the revocation confirms. It cannot reverse transfers that have already succeeded.

  • Save the public transaction IDs and complete addresses.
  • Check for other active approvals on the affected wallet and network.
  • Disconnect unfamiliar WalletConnect sessions.
  • Do not send more funds to a contract or person offering recovery services.
  • Follow What to Do If Your Wallet Is Compromised if unauthorized outgoing transactions exist.

If you exposed your Secret Phrase or private key, revoking approvals is not enough. Move remaining assets to a newly created wallet and follow What to Do If Your Secret Phrase Is Exposed.

Approval Revocation Checklist​

  • Verify the wallet, network, token contract, and spender address.
  • Use an approval checker on the exact network involved.
  • Review the revocation in Gem Wallet before confirming.
  • Keep enough native coin for the network fee.
  • Wait for the revocation transaction to confirm.
  • Verify that the allowance is zero or removed.
  • Disconnect the related WalletConnect session separately.

Learn more about allowances in What Are Token Approvals?.